I stepped out of my comfort zone Monday night. It was MNO for the co-op. The new co-op my family joined last month. I'm the new girl. Okay, I'm not the only new girl, but I'm one of them. This is not easy for me. I love people, but I don't really make friends easily. People who are close to me usually don't believe this, but I'm shy and quiet around people I'm not familiar with. It takes me a little while to get warmed up. I am NOT comfortable around new people. At all.
So, joining this new co-op was hard. We were part of a wonderful co-op last year at our church. Most of my friends were members. I had a support system. So did my kids. We were comfortable. Then, I heard about this other co-op which is only five minutes away from our house. This co-op has been around for a few years. It's bigger, more diverse, and offers more classes that the boys really need.
I agonized over this for weeks. I prayed a lot and talked it over with Chris. We both agreed that we should favor what's best for the kids' education over where we would be most comfortable. So, we switched.
I was worried that the people there wouldn't be nice. I worried about not fitting in and about the kids being unhappy without their old co-op friends. Mainly, I just wanted us all to fit in. Isn't that what everyone wants? To fit in and be accepted?
Turns out I was worried for nothing. This place is crawling with niceness. Seriously... everyone's nice. And inviting and I've felt so welcomed. But still, it was hard for me to commit to meeting some of these ladies for dinner. Especially when I found out my sister couldn't go. I like to hide behind my little sister sometimes.
But I bit my lip and went anyway, even though it was pouring down rain and our area was under a tornado watch. I'm so glad I did. Even though we had to go to four different restaurants because the first three were either crowded, already closed, or closing in 15 minutes due to Labor Day. We finally got settled in at Out Back and I had a really good time. We laughed and cried. Those are the marks of a really good evening.
And yes. At the end of the night, I felt like I fit in. Still the "new girl", but not an outsider. It's a nice feeling.
Here's to getting out of my comfort zone. Maybe I should try it more often.
So, joining this new co-op was hard. We were part of a wonderful co-op last year at our church. Most of my friends were members. I had a support system. So did my kids. We were comfortable. Then, I heard about this other co-op which is only five minutes away from our house. This co-op has been around for a few years. It's bigger, more diverse, and offers more classes that the boys really need.
I agonized over this for weeks. I prayed a lot and talked it over with Chris. We both agreed that we should favor what's best for the kids' education over where we would be most comfortable. So, we switched.
I was worried that the people there wouldn't be nice. I worried about not fitting in and about the kids being unhappy without their old co-op friends. Mainly, I just wanted us all to fit in. Isn't that what everyone wants? To fit in and be accepted?
Turns out I was worried for nothing. This place is crawling with niceness. Seriously... everyone's nice. And inviting and I've felt so welcomed. But still, it was hard for me to commit to meeting some of these ladies for dinner. Especially when I found out my sister couldn't go. I like to hide behind my little sister sometimes.
But I bit my lip and went anyway, even though it was pouring down rain and our area was under a tornado watch. I'm so glad I did. Even though we had to go to four different restaurants because the first three were either crowded, already closed, or closing in 15 minutes due to Labor Day. We finally got settled in at Out Back and I had a really good time. We laughed and cried. Those are the marks of a really good evening.
And yes. At the end of the night, I felt like I fit in. Still the "new girl", but not an outsider. It's a nice feeling.
Here's to getting out of my comfort zone. Maybe I should try it more often.
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